The GISES intensive concentration is an option for students wishing to major in sociology and focus in the area of Global Information and Social Enterprise Studies (GISES). The major is sponsored and administered by the Department of Sociology. This major is designed for highly motivated, self-directed and enterprising students who have demonstrated the capacity to design and complete an honors-quality project for a civil society group. Students are required to take a total of 15 courses (three prescribed lower-division courses in preparation for the major, two prescribed lower-division core courses, two prescribed upper-division GISES courses, two prescribed upper-division core courses, five upper-division electives, and a project practicum course). In addition, they must successfully complete the comprehensive requirement prior to graduation.
Lower-Division Courses
Lower-division preparation:
Students must take the following three courses or their articulated equivalents.
SOCY30A | Introduction to Global Information and Social Enterprise Studies | 5 |
And select two from the following three options:
SOCY1 | Introduction to Sociology | 5 |
SOCY10 | Issues and Problems in American Society | 5 |
SOCY15 | World Society | 5 |
Lower-division core courses:
The following two sociology courses, or their articulated equivalents, are required as the foundation of statistical and research methods in the discipline.
SOCY3A | The Evaluation of Evidence | 5 |
SOCY3B | Statistical Methods | 5 |
Upper-Division Courses
Upper-division GISES core courses:
The following two courses are required for the design and implementation of the GISES project.
SOCY107A | Designing ICT Projects for Social Enterprise | 5 |
SOCY107B | Project Implementation and Grant Writing for Social Entrepreneurs | 3 |
Upper-division core courses:
The following two sociology courses are required as the foundation of theoretical training in the discipline.
Upper-division advanced coursework:
Five upper-division electives are required, selected from the Sociology Department elective courses, Sociology 110-189, or from Sociology Course List. Students are strongly recommended to consult with the director of GISES before choosing their electives, to ensure that their choices contribute to their selected project and/or their growth as a technology activist or technology linked social change advocate. Courses outside the list of approved courses may also be approved by the director of GISES. For more information on the process students must follow to have their courses approved, please visit the Everett Program webpage.
Project practicum:
Students must enroll in SOCY 196G, Project Practicum, and complete their GISES capstone project. SOCY 196G is offered every fall quarter. Students may review the GISES webpage, or contact the program director of GISES (socy@ucsc.edu) for more detailed guidelines regarding the GISES capstone project. Prior to enrolling in SOCY 196G, students are required to submit, electronically, a one-page polished and concise summary of the GISES capstone project that will be the focus of their project practicum. This project summary constitutes a prerequisite for enrolling in SOCY 196G.
SOCY196G | Project Practicum: Global Information and Social Enterprise | 5 |
The final GISES capstone project must make an unambiguous contribution to advancing a solution to a problem associated with global social justice and/or sustainable development. The project must be associated with a real, viable civil society organization, community organization, school or non-governmental organization (NGO). To complete the final requirements for GISES major or minor, the integrated project—narrative and digital deliverable—must be mounted on the appropriate web-enabled database managed by the Everett Program.
Disciplinary Communication (DC) Requirement
Students of every major must satisfy that major's upper-division Disciplinary Communication (DC) requirement. The goal of the Sociology Department’s Disciplinary Communication requirement is to ensure that students acquire and develop the skills in writing and other forms of communication that will best serve them in their study of sociology, and as future learners. The following courses satisfy the Disciplinary Communication requirement for students in programs administered by the Sociology Department.
Comprehensive Requirement
Prior to graduation, students are required to complete one of the following comprehensive requirements.
Senior thesis
The prerequisite for the senior thesis is SOCY 3A and completion of the major’s Disciplinary Communications (DC) requirement. Students who would like to write a senior thesis must submit to their preferred faculty thesis sponsor a proposal that includes: a working title, a description of the work to be undertaken, research question(s), methodology, a brief bibliography, a timeline to completion, at least three keywords describing the thesis topics, and materials from relevant courses that might help faculty determine their preparedness to complete the thesis. In addition, students must familiarize themselves with IRB protocols and include in their proposal whether their research includes human subjects, if the project is IRB exempt, or if an IRB application will be needed. The proposal must be submitted and approved one quarter prior to the commencement of the thesis work. Students unsuccessful in obtaining a thesis sponsor through these means may submit their proposals to the department’s undergraduate education committee (UEC) no later than the sixth week of the quarter, one quarter prior to the commencement of the thesis work. UEC members will review the merits of these proposals and assign the ones they approve to faculty members who have not yet agreed to serve as thesis advisers for the following year. Students will be notified of the outcome of the UEC’s deliberations within three weeks.
Capstone course
SOCY196A | Capstone: The Sociologist as Public Intellectual | 5 |
Upper-division lecture course that explores public sociology and integrates current research with theoretical strands in sociology.
In exceptional cases, students unable to take the senior capstone course may be allowed to substitute a portfolio of work. This substitution must be approved in advance by the department chair. The portfolio option consists of: 1) portfolio of materials from (at least) three upper-division sociology courses; 2) a synthetic essay; 3) a paper consisting of new research by the student on some contemporary social or political issue, analyzed using the theoretical and empirical materials from those three courses.
See the department website for additional information.
Sociology with Concentration in GISES Intensive Major Planner One
The following is a recommended academic plan for students in the sociology with concentration in GISES intensive major.
Option One
Option Two
In addition to the specific courses shown in these planners, a student must complete courses satisfying the CC, ER, IM, MF, SI, TA, PR and composition general education (GE) requirements. All sociology majors are required to take a statistical methods course which satisfies the SR GE, and GISES students complete SOCY 30A which satisfies the PE GE. Other GEs that could be satisfied in the sociology major, but are not required, are CC, ER, and TA.
Sociology with Concentration in GISES Intensive Major Planner Two
The following is a recommended academic plan for transfer students entering the sociology with concentration in GISES intensive major. It is assumed that SOCY 1 and SOCY 10 equivalencies were completed at the previous college.
*Articulated equivalent courses may be taken prior to transfer
This planner also assumes that a student has completed most of the general education requirements, beyond major preparation requirements, before transferring to UCSC.